GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) — Area hospitals and clinics are keeping a close eye on the spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus after an outbreak in Washington State and a warning from the CDC telling communities to prepare themselves.
Carol Bess, Bellin Health Infection Prevention Team Leader says they’re following advice from the CDC.
“We’re working on making sure that when that first patient shows up–if that first patient shows up–that we’re prepared to manage that patient properly,” Bess told WTAQ.
That involves moving the patient to a specialized negative-airflow room in the emergency department.
“We will be directing patients initially to our emergency departments, where we have airborne isolation rooms,” Bess said.
It’s not just the big hospitals that have to take steps. Clinic groups like Prevea Health also have to keep a close eye on who is walking through their doors as well.
“At Prevea, we work closely with our hospital partners to try to identify people in the early stages so that we can triage them into an area that’s appropriate for them,” Dr. Paul Pritchard Vice President and Chief of Quality of Prevea Health said Monday.
That might mean getting admitted to a local hospital, but Pritchard says that isn’t always what’s in the cards. The CDC is issuing warnings about the virus, but not all cases of COVID-19 are severe.
“If they had a more mild disease, we may suggest what we suggest to patients that have a more mild case of the flu,” Pritchard said. “Where you stay home, drink plenty of fluids, keep yourself isolated.”
At-home isolation was how Wisconsin’s only COVID-19 case–that of a patient in Dane County–was treated. That patient stayed in isolation at home until testing negative for the virus.
Prichard says the clinic group has started controlling the distribution of face masks within their clinics.
“What we’re trying to do is identify the patients that really need it, and then provide them with a mask if they enter our clinic so that we’re protecting other patients and staff,” Pritchard said.
Face mask shortages have been reported throughout the country and the world.
